Soup is creamy, without the cream

If there’s a walking, talking advertisement for the power of food to provide energy, it’s got to be Tess Masters. The actor, cook and author behind the popular Blender Girl blog (and cookbook of the same name) is a whirlwind of positivity, words and ideas.

Her Sustenance Stew, from her second book, “The Perfect Blend: 100 Blender Recipes to Energize and Revitalize” (Ten Speed Press), is packed with some of my go-to ingredients: sweet potatoes, broccoli, Swiss chard, tomatoes and — here’s the brilliant addition — almond butter. The latter gives the broth a creamy touch without weighing it down. If you’re wondering where the blender comes in, well, it honestly doesn’t even need to in this case. Masters suggests that you start with canned whole tomatoes and use a blender to roughly chop them, but it’s just as easy to start with canned diced tomatoes, so that’s what I did.

She calls for the stew to be topped with the crowning touches of avocado and almonds, and I would never skimp on those.

Pour the oil into a large pot over medium heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the onion, garlic and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt; cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is soft, 5 minutes.

Stir in the broth, tomatoes and their juices, the ginger, crushed red pepper flakes and sweet potatoes. Increase the heat to high; once the mixture comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium, so the liquid is bubbling gently. Add the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt and cook the stew, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until the sweet potatoes are just fork-tender, about 15 minutes.

Add the broccoli; cook for 5 minutes, then stir in the chard and almond butter. Cook just until the chard is wilted, 5 minutes. The stew should be creamy. Stir in the chopped cilantro, then taste and add more salt, as needed.

To serve, divide among bowls. Top with avocado slices, almonds and cilantro sprigs, if desired.